Rating: 
Summary: Too Many Coincidences
Review: Faye Kellerman is an excellent writer and I always look forward to the next installment in the Peter/Rina series. This time I was somewhat disappointed. The characters were the same, the descriptive narratives were vivid, the dialog was sharp, so what's the problem? The plot was overburdened with coincidences, that's what.Kellerman simply took too many shortcuts to tie everything together and bring the novel to conclusion. There was no real detective work taking place- just a series of stunningly prescient guesses that all panned out. One coincidence is about all a good novelist is allowed per book, and Kellerman far exceeded that. The characters were also a little thin and not as well-developed as per the norm for Faye Kellerman. Despite all of that I actually started to give this book four stars because of Faye Kellerman's high skill-level as a writer. I really enjoyed reading this book and I would not hesitate to recommend any book by the Kellerman(s).
Rating: 
Summary: Up with the best of them
Review: Faye Kellerman is definitely the No 1-crime fiction writer of today, and ranks up there with the best novelists of police and crime thrillers.
She has not in any way lost any of her talent for keeping the reader glued to the book, and opening up a world of intrigue and mystery. This book proves Kellerman's skill at moving skillfully from the homely to the horrific, from warmth to horror, from heroic to diabolical. In an age where the hideous anti-Semitism is on the rise again, in measure never seen since the fall of Nazi Germany, the story begins with the hideous desecration of Peter and Rina's local synagogue, through the world of shady White Supremacist type groups, teenagers corrupted into insanity by their parents, whose own 60's radicalism, in my opinion, was the root of all the evil, drugs, bizarre sex rituals and murder. Of course Peter and his teams determination and Rina's sanity and compassion helps restore truth and balance. Rina's rebellious son Jacob plays a big role in bringing this one to being solved. On the downside I would have liked to see some of Cindy , and Marge's stepdaughter Vega.
Rating:
Summary: Middling adventure for a favorite orthodox duo
Review: Faye Kellerman poaches a bit from her hubby in this Rina/Pete outing, dabbling a bit in adolescent psychology and the nasty hijinks of mental health providers. It mostly works and kept me turning pages until the characters' motivations unraveled and the sanctimony around Rina's cleanup of a descrated synagogue got too excessive. A nastily misogynistic portrait of a young femme fatale also had me wondering about Faye's own mental health. Must women be either trollops or sainted orthodox housewives in her world? Entertaining but still far short of her best.
Rating: 
Summary: Dull
Review: First of all, I will not bore anyone with a complete review of the plot (since most everyone else has). It is enough to say that I have also read (like many others) all the books in this series. In my opinion the storylines are getting dry and dull. Unlike some other reviewers, I am not disturbed by the religious subtext. After all, the main characters in this series are Orthodox Jews. Obviously there will be references to the importance religion plays in their lives. The plot started out interesting but soon turned boring. I forced myself to finish the book. The interaction between Rina, Peter and their children are becoming far more interesting than the storylines. I think the author needs some new, interesting ideas for her mysteries.
Rating:
Summary: A better offering than the previous book. Some major flaws.
Review: First, let me get a pet peeve off of my chest regarding this author. It seems that in almost every book she has some personal bias against others yet at the same time she wants the reader to believe that she has all the answers to to the eternal questions of every countries standing against the Holocaust.In this book there comes a point where she has the main character (Rina) speaking about Poland's part during the Holocaust. I should say the Polish peoples part in the Holocaust. Not the Germans who invaded Poland. Ms. Kellerman states that the Polish people basically rolled over and joined the Germans terror of the Jews. This is not true. I am a descendant of a family that lost a four people in my immediate to the Nazis. My grandmother and her mother escaped to Switzerland during the Holocaust. My grandmother lost her father and three brothers in the Holocaust. They were Polish Catholics. Her brothers died fighting the Germans. Her father died in a concentration camp in Germany. Let's not forget that many other non-Jews gave thier lives to fight Hitler also. O.K. this book was much better than the last one. It did run on a bit with the differing plots and such. I thought having the killers involved in racism and the SAT scandal was a bit over the top. All in all, aside from my personal pet peeve which brought the story down alot for me personally, I would give it a C. I would also like to add that I really enjoy learning about the Jewish religion. It is fascinating to me. I also wished there was more of a story with Peter and Rina's home life. I love to read about that.
Rating:
Summary: Not her best work
Review: For years I have enjoyed Faye Kellerman's Decker/Lazarus novels and I have eagerly anticipated each new book. However, the plotting in this one is sloppy, motivations are unbelievable, and the ultimate end of the truly "bad guy" (being eaten at night in the dark by a mountain lion) was cheap. I wish she would stick to well-designed detective stories developing further the relationship between Rina Lazarus, Peter Decker, and their extended families.
Rating:
Summary: Best in a While
Review: From the beginning, the best part of this series has always been, to this reader, the complex relationships among Peter, Rina, and their children/step-children, along with the interweaving of Jewish rituals and traditions as part of the plot. Because both of these elements are so strongly presented in this book, I found it one of the most satisfying of the series, even as I was somewhat disappointed that what began as a complex plot with seeemingly great potential petered out at the end. The contrast between the many disfunctional parent/adolescent relationships and the relationship of Peter and Jacob and their difficulties was especially moving. All in all, an excellent addition to the series; but beware, this is one series that should be read in order beginning with the Ritual Bath if it is to be fully appreciated.
Rating:
Summary: Her work is fantastic but......
Review: Having read all of the Decker/Lazarus series, and always anxiously awaiting the next book, I could not wait to get my hands on Forgotten. I found it very entertaining, suspensful and loved getting to know Jacob. However, I am disturbed about two aspects of the story. First of all I found the ending to be a little too "neat." I don't want to give it away but I felt like it was 58 minutes into an hour TV show and you had to get to the killer and deal with him/her in the last remaining minute. The other thing that bothered me is the fact that the Goldings apparently had no idea who the Baldwins were where in reality Ernesto would have gone to them already for College testing Prep according to what Karl says about all the students from thier prep school going to Dr. Baldwin for college preparations, and Ernesto had already gone through all the steps to be accepted to Brown. Maybe this one inconsistency shouldn't bother me but it does. I guess because normally Ms. Kellerman avoids such obvious gaps in her stories. I will anxiously be awaiting the next Decker/Lazarus mystery but hope it is more along the lines of her earlier books.
Rating:
Summary: Another winner for Kellerman...
Review: I eagerly awaited the publication of this book, and was not disappointed. After only the first few pages, it was like welcoming old friends into my home as I was brought up-to-date on Rina and Peter and their family. Once again,Faye Kellerman succeeds in weaving an exciting mystery around the lives of people who are in a daily balance between their religious beliefs, the prejudices of society, and the world of policing. Diversity, respect for differences among people, and an ability to create tense drama are the hallmarks of this talented writer. I'm ready for the next chapter...in the next book....
Rating:
Summary: Good story with a very poor ending
Review: I enjoyed reading the book, the family of Decker is very interesting. The unfolding of Jacob's life was very well done and the relationship between him and his step dad is fascinating. But why did the killer kill 4 people, I thought that the character development of the killer was very poor. Yes, he has a split personality and yes he had a very sad upbringing, but why did he kill Ernesto and his therapist, and the wife, etc. I just didn't buy the ending.
| 
